The BBC has announced a three-step plan to cut out single-use plastics from its operations. These steps include eradicating cups and cutlery by the end of this year, and plastic containers by 2019. Ultimately, the company aims to be entirely free of single-use plastics by 2020. The BBC brought the problem of plastic pollution to the attention of many people with Blue Planet II, a series that emphasised the pervasive damage caused by plastic in the marine environment.

Less than 1 per cent of coffee cups are recycled in Britain, which has led to politicians calling for a "latte levy" on disposable cups. Britain has resisted those calls and instead encourages voluntary measures to limit cup use.

Sitting in middle of southern Pacific Ocean around 5,000 km, (3,100 mi) from the nearest major population center, you might think that the uninhabited Henderson Island would appear relatively untouched. It is, after all,..